Internal-combustion engine



A. L. POWELL.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2, I92].

1 ,43'3,65@. Patented Oct. 31, 31922.

2 SHEETS-SHEEI I.

A. L. POWELL.

INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 2. 1921.

L433,65, Patented Oct 31, 11922..

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

Patented Uct. 31, I922.

AL'VAH L. POWELL, OF MILES CITY. MONTANA. ASSIGNOR TO THE A. L. POWELL POWER 00.. INC, OF MILES CITY, MONTANA, A BODY CORPORATE.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Application filed February 2, 1921.

T 0 all whom. it may concern:

Be it known that ALvAH L. POWELL. a citizen of the United States. residing at Miles City. in the county of Custer and State of Montana. has invented certain new and useful Improvements in Internal-Combustion Engines. of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in internal combustion engines in which I obtain advantages by the use of multiple cylinders in combination with a system of compression distribution between the related and connected cylinders. and by further provid ing means for igniting an explosive charge by the heat of a volume of air compressed to a high degree. I also obtain an additional cooling effect by the induction and exhaust of air in front of the piston during part of a cycle. In the accompanying drawings I show a form of my improvement, in which- Fig. 1 is a sectional elevation of one cylinder and the related parts.

Fig. 2 is a section on a?;. Fig. 1 looking in direction of arrows.

Fig. 3 is a section of the power piston, taken on the dotted line c(Z.

Fig. 4 is a section on line 5- Fig. 3.

Figs. 5. 6. 7. are diagrams of the operation during a cycle.

Fig. 9 is a diagram. showing the order of the crank impulses.

Figs. 8. l0. 11. 12. are vertical elevations. partly in section. of cylinders: pistons and valves being shown at successive parts of ycle.

In Fig. 1. a cylinder. A. contains a piston. A slidable therein and connected. by piston rod A with a crank connecting rod by a wrist pin. A The crank connecting rod and related power shaft parts are not shown. The piston rod A passes through a gland. A. suitably packed. as indicated in drawing. 1 3 communicates with bosses A A. the latter bored and connecting with passagcs in A These run to a cored space in A Holes in walls of piston lead into this space as shown in sectional view Fig. 1. In Figs. 3. 4. the form of the cored space in piston A is shown. It will be observed that the area is partly divided by solid sections through center. leaving cavities A. A These are connected by cross channels A".

Serial No. 441,971.

A Flexible tubes B, B are fitted to the bored bosses A A. and communicating with a lubricating oil supply. This oil passes upward into piston on one side and downward to the oppositely placed flexible tube on the other. In this way a constant medium for lubrication is furnished. the walls of A being oiled through the holes B B In the head of A. a bored opening admits a second piston. B slidable therein. This piston is operable by a crank lever. 13*, pivoted on a pin. B in a cylinder lug. B. The crank lever is operated by a cam on engine that is not shown in the drawing. The piston 13 is cored. the cavity so formed being shown at E From this cavity there are openings that lead to cylinder wall. and in Fig. 1 one of the openings can be seen while coinciding with an open cored space in wall of cylinder A. at B These opcn ings are ports and will be so termed in the remainder of this specification.

In the lower head of cylinder A are located operable valves B B. On one side of said cylinder. and near the bottom, there is another valve. C. This is a check valve that controls entrance to a cored hole in the wall of A. This hole C passes up the side of A to passage (Fig. 2) to the port B in upper head. Fig. 1. ()n cylinder A there are further provided an operable inlet valve. and an operable outlet valve. C

I will first describe the operation of one cylinder of my improved engine and then take up the movements of related parts as shown in Figs. 8. 10. l1. 12.

Let it be assumed that a charge of compressed air. at high temperature. fills the cavity and space E of piston B and that an explosive mixture of air and fuel has been admitted .to cylinder A above piston A On starting engine. piston A will move downward until the crank of power shaft has reached a point a on crank circle this motion occurs after compression. being indicated in Fig. 5 by the space from end of compression to (I. this being indicated in Figs. 7. During this movement piston B follows it at the same speed. by the action of a cam. not shown. The space between the pistons remains constant during this part of movement. As H follows A the port B" in said piston opens into the space above A.

A charge of highly compressed air has been trapped in the space 13 from the passage C and is transferred to the explosion chamber. The highly compressed air, heated to the necessary temperature by its own compression, comes in contact with and ignites the explosive charge above piston A The latter continues downward, developing power from the combustion that takes place. The high compression of the igniting air is an added volume to the already compressed charge in the combustion chamber. Piston B remains down, being held by a dwell on the controlling cam (not shown) and in this position the port int cylinder wall passage C is closed, B acting as a piston valve. Piston A on upstroke, drives out the products of combustion through operable exhaust valve C that opens for the purpose, and near end of its stroke piston B returns to its original position, Fig. 1. ()n succeeding downstroke valve C closes and operable fuel intake valve C opens and an explosive charge is drawn in. At end of downstroke valve C closes and the fresh charge is compressed on upstroke.

On first downstroke of piston A the air in front of'it is exhausted through operable valve, B". On succeeding upstroke B closes and operable valve B opens, a charge of fresh air being drawn in. On succeeding downstroke the valve B 13, both remain closed and the air is compressed into cylinder passage C through check valve C. passing up to the cored space in piston B and filling it with a fresh charge of compressed air.

In Fig. 5, a diagram of the cycle in the firing chamber is shown. Explosion occurs at a point a, and expansion continues for a quarter of stroke. Exhaust follows on downstroke and unstroke. Intake and-compression are indicated. Fig. 6 is a diagram of the cycle in the compression chamber in the lower part of cylinder A. On downstroke of piston A a charge of air is driven out through valve B On upstroke a charge is indrawn through B as marked intake, and is compressed on succeeding downstroke, passing to cored passage C On succeeding upstroke, intake is repeated, as shown in diagram. Fig. 7 shows the cycle ofthe piston B When A moves down piston B follows, for a distance indicated on diagram and remains down while A is on power stroke. A moves up at a point marked Chamber moves up. The period of dwell is shown on the circles, at points marked Chamber up, Chamber down.

In Fig. 8 four cylinders of an engine are shown, with connecting pipes, valves and pistons. The construction is the same as has been described for cylinder A, with the exceptii is that valve C is omitted; valve 13 is not operated by a cam, being only an outlet check valve; valve B is an inlet check valve, to prevent return of a compressed charge to the pipe line C The operation is as follows:

In Fig. 8, piston 1 (A is moving downward, by reason of an exploded charge behind it. In front of said piston a charge of air is bein compressed into pipe line C through va ve 13 The same action is tak ing place with reference to piston 3 (A Pistons 2 (A 4 (A move up, compressing an explosive charge in front of them and indrawing a fresh charge of air through valves B During downstroke of piston 1 (A secondary piston B remains in position shown at r, Fig. 8. On return stroke of piston 1 (A piston B remains as shown at 1 in Fig. 10. On intake stroke of piston 1 (A secondary piston B has receded to position given in Fig. 11. The port B is cut off. On succeeding upstroke for compression, piston B is in position shown in Fig. 12 a highly compressed charge has passed through pipe C and filled cavity in B, through port B and as piston reaches end of upward fuel charge compression stroke both pistons descend together until port B has reached point indicated by r, Fig. 8. The charge of air in secondary piston B ignites the fuel charge already compressed by piston 1 (A and the latter continues to move, by reason of the pressure developed by the combustion of its own charge, reinforced by the added hot air charge from C Two cylinders work together for compressing air in C on each downstroke, this charge passing through C to B. The same relative action occurs with the other pistons, at the same points of stroke, as indicated in the complete cycle of four positions in Figs. 8, 10, 11, 12. I thus secure a large volume of highly compressed air in 13, this serving, by reason of its temperature, as an ignitant, while, by reason of its pressure, it increases the average compression of the combustion charge. This adds to the power of an engine embodying the improvements I have described over one of the same size operating with the usual cycle and form of construction.

What I believe is new and'ask to have protected by Letters Patent is In an internal combustion engine, the combination of a power cylinder, a power piston, a chamber within said power piston, a piston rod, separate channels in said rod, communicating means from said channels to said chamber, communicating means from said rod to a lubrication source, a gland and stufling box, means for moving said rod through said stufiing box, inlet and outlet valves in closed end of power cylinder, a longitudinal channel integral with said cylinder wall, a check valve in said channel, operable fuel admission and exhaust valves in said power cylinder, a secondary piston, means for moving said piston in head of power cylinder, a chamber in said piston, communicating means between said piston and said longitudinal channel, communicat- 

